Look at the birds in the sky; they do not plant seeds or harvest [a crop] or store [things] in barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them [adequately]. Are you not a lot more valuable than they are?

Beware of false prophets; they come to you with the garb of sheep but at heart they are ravenous wolves.

He said to them, "What man is there among you, who has one sheep, and if this one falls into a pit on the Sabbath day, won't he grab on to it, and lift it out?

And [still] other seed fell onto fertile soil, where some of it produced a crop of one hundred, some sixty and some thirty times [as much as was planted].

And straight away Jesus put out his hand and took a grip of him, and said to him, O man of little faith, why were you in doubt?

Again he sent another group of slaves larger than the first; and they did the same thing to them.

Pilate said to them, "Take [a group of] guards [with you]; go and make the grave site as secure as you can."

And at that very moment, there in their synagogue, a man in the grip of an unclean spirit shrieked out.

Then there were those who were sown on fertile soil. These represent people who heard 'the word,' accepted it and yielded a crop of thirty, sixty and even a hundred times [as much as was planted]."

The ground bears the crop of itself--first the blade, then the ear, and then the full grain in the ear;

And He commanded them all to recline, group by group, on the green grass.

But Jesus took him by the hand and raised him; and he stood up.

that he would save us from our enemies and from the grip of all who hate us.

but believing him to be in the group of travelers, they went a day's journey. And they began searching for him among [their] relatives and [their] acquaintances,

Then Jesus got up and left the synagogue and went to Simon’s (Peter’s) house. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was suffering from a high fever, and they asked Him to help her.

Then He came down [from the mountain] with them and stood on a level place [where] a large crowd of His disciples and a large group of people had gathered to hear Him and be healed from their diseases.

And [still] other [seed] fell into fertile soil; it grew and produced a crop of one hundred times [as much as was planted]. As He said these things, He called out, "The person who has ears to hear with ought to listen [to this] carefully."

For he gave an order to the evil spirit to come out of the man. For frequently it would take a grip of him: and he was kept under control, and prisoned with chains; but parting the chains in two, he would be sent by the driving of the evil spirit into waste places.

Then the whole group of them rose up and brought Jesus before Pilate.

I sent you to reap a crop on which you have not toiled. Others have toiled, and you have reaped the benefit of their toil."

to replace Judas in this ministry and this group of apostles, from which he fell away to go to where he belonged" [i.e., to the place of punishment for unrepentant sinners].

Now the group of those who believed were one heart and soul, and no one said anything of what belonged to him was his own, but all [things] were theirs in common.

Not long ago Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody, and a group of about 400 men rallied to him. He was killed, and all his partisans were dispersed and came to nothing.

Later on another man, named Judas of Galilee, appeared during the census [Note: The time and circumstances of this census were probably known to the original readers], and led [a group of] people away after him, but he also was killed and all of his followers were scattered.

So the Twelve called the whole group of disciples together and said, "It is not desirable for us to neglect messages from God in order to wait on tables.

So the preaching about God flourished, the number of the disciples in Jerusalem multiplied greatly, and a large group of priests became obedient to the faith.

As Peter talked with him, he entered [the house] and found a large group of people assembled.

The same thing happened in Iconium when Paul and Barnabas went into the Jewish synagogue and spoke in such a way that a large group of both Jews and Greeks believed.

Symeon [i.e., Peter] reported how God first sent [someone to preach] to the Gentiles in order to reach a group of them [with the Gospel message] for His name.

So, when Paul, Barnabas, Judas and Silas left [the meeting] they went down to Antioch and, after gathering a large group [of the church] together, they presented the letter to them.

Some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, along with a large group of God-fearing Greeks and quite a few prominent women.

And all the city was filled with confusion. And they rushed with one accord to the theater, keeping a firm grip on Gaius and Aristarchus, Macedonians, traveling companions of Paul.

When daylight came, [a group of] Jews conspired together, agreeing under oath that they would neither eat nor drink until they had killed Paul.

And when the ship got into the grip of it, and was not able to make headway into the wind, we gave way, and went before it.

So it is conditioned on faith, that it might be in accordance with God's unmerited favor, so that the promise might be in force for all the descendants of Abraham, not only for those who belong to the law party but also for those who belong to the faith group of Abraham. He is the father of us all,

He who furnishes the sower with seed and with bread to eat will supply seed for you and multiply it; he will increase the crop of your charities ??11 you will be enriched on all hands, so that you can be generous on all occasions, and your generosity, of which I am the agent, will make men give thanks to God;

For men of this stamp are sham apostles, dishonest workmen, assuming the garb of Apostles of Christ.

who killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets, who have persecuted us, and who please neither God nor any group of people,

So then, brothers, continue to stand firm and keep a tight grip on the teachings you have received from us, whether by word of mouth or by letter.

He gave Himself up for us, to buy us back from [enslavement to] all [kinds of] wickedness and to purify for Himself a group of people who belong to Him and who are eager to do good deeds.

No discipline seems pleasant, but painful, at the time [it is received], yet later on it produces a crop of peace and righteousness in [the lives of] those who have been trained by it.

So tighten the grip of your slipping hands; stiffen the stand of your knocking knees;

But the [true] wisdom, which is from [God] above, is first of all pure, then peace-loving, patient and easily persuaded. [It is] full of mercy and produces a crop of good deeds; [it is] impartial [or, unwavering] and sincere.

[People who are] peacemakers sow [seeds of] peace and it produces a crop of righteousness [in the lives of others].

Be patient, then, brothers, till the arrival of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious crop of the land, biding his time patiently till he gets the autumn and the spring rains;

Likewise, you younger men [of lesser rank and experience], be subject to your elders [seek their counsel]; and all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another [tie on the servant’s apron], for God is opposed to the proud [the disdainful, the presumptuous, and He defeats them], but He gives grace to the humble.

We know [with confidence] that anyone born of God does not habitually sin; but He (Jesus) who was born of God [carefully] keeps and protects him, and the evil one does not touch him.

Then another angel [i.e., the fourth] came out of the Temple, calling out with a loud voice to Him who was sitting on the cloud, "Use your sharp sickle to reap [a harvest] because it is harvest time, and the crop of the earth is ripe."